More immigrants and their families are starting new lives in Pictou County under the Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program.
Central Nova MP Sean Fraser said the pilot was “moving in the right direction,” as the latest figures show that 247 prospective immigrants were endorsed for resettlement in Nova Scotia so far in 2018. This represents an increased uptick since last year, when only 170 newcomers were approved between the program’s launch in March 2017 and November of that year.
Fraser said the pilot was a better option than the federal Temporary Foreign Worker program rolled out by the former Conservative government before they lost power in 2015.
“Instead of the workers taking a job for a few months and sending remittance payments back to another country, we’re seeing families coming here, helping grow our communities,” Fraser told The News.
As well as growing local communities, new immigrants are filling local employers’ labour market needs if they cannot find a Canadian to do the job.
The Ivany Commission’s report warns that bringing in immigrants is vital if Nova Scotia is serious about halting its long-term population decline.
Fraser said that he was completely “bought in,” to bringing in newcomers.
These newcomers also include Syrian refugees, who have resettled in Pictou County with the help of dedicated local volunteers.
They are just a handful of the roughly 50,000 or so Syrian refugees resettled in Canada since 2015.
While local volunteers are feeling some strain, they have a strong network at hand to help newcomers, unlike immigrant and refugee resettlement agencies in major Canadian cities, who often struggle to cope.
However, those Syrians in Pictou County are quickly settling in – and they are choosing to stay in the region.
“They’ve been thriving. We see the incredible example of Peace by Chocolate in Antigonish with Tareq Hadhad and his family now hiring somewhere in the range of 30 Canadians to work at their facility,” said Fraser.
Other refugees have also found success locally: Majd Al Zhouris, also from Antigonish, moved his fellow Nova Scotians to tears with his award-winning play To Eat An Almond.
Fraser said it was “heartwarming,” that Canada’s openness towards newcomers was paying off with stronger communities and more jobs being created.
Fraser said that turning one’s back on neighbours “frankly is not an option for Canada.”
